Shopping for Souvenirs in Bali : the Best Places to Go

Bali Island is wonderful tourism destination. The island is not only filled with many wonderful natures, but also strong culture that reflects on many aspects. To enjoy the culture of Bali, there are many things you can do. A series of traditional ceremony and sacred rituals are open for public to see.

The traditional medical practice of Balian can also be experienced for medical and fitness treatment. The architectural style is also unique and is everywhere to be seen. You can also taste various choices of traditional culinary in Bali. Besides all of those, you can also buy several traditional Balinese crafts as souvenirs or gifts.

Shopping for Souvenirs in Bali(Source: Flickr. Credit: Pujo DY)

There are many kinds of traditional and modern crafts you can buy in Bali. From the unique Balinese Batik cloths, coastal cloths, many kinds of accessories, dining utensils, beauty treatment products, and much more. In Bali, you can also buy several other kinds of souvenir from Indonesia which are not originally from Bali.

The problem is, some tourists might do not really know the best place to buy it. They end up buying it on the shops they see along the way. It is not wrong, of course. But if you go to the right place, not only you can get cheaper prices, but you can also have a lot more choices of items to buy. This way, you can compare from one item to another to find the most worthy ones to buy.

For your reference, here are several places in Bali that are recommended to visit if you want to shop for souvenirs in Bali:

Sukawati Art Market

Sukawati Art Market is the most popular market for traditional artworks and handicrafts in Bali. It is considered as the largest and the most complete souvenir markets in Bali. The market building consists of two stories and it is filled with various kinds of items. Most of the sellers are also the producers of the items they sell. This way, the price would be much cheaper than if you buy it from other shops.

There are no fixed price for every items sold in Sukawati Art Market. Therefore, a good bargaining skill is necessary to get the cheap rates. It is highly recommended to spend your time to browse to as many stores as you can to compare the prices. And then, you bargain the price for each item you want to the sellers. Buying at the first shop you visit may cause you to get high prices.

Besides stores, there are also many hawkers offering their products to you. It is better to avoid them. Once you give attention to one hawker, the other hawkers will come to you very quickly. Buying an item for hawker might cause other hawkers to demand you to buy items from them as well.

At this market, you can find many kinds of painting with high artistic values, including the ones made by maestros such as Blanco, Bonet, Arie Smit, and other painting artists. There are also various kinds of unique cloths to buy such as Balinese beach cloth, Batik, and sarong. Other traditional artistic products are also available such as wayang kulit (leather puppet), wooden carvings, and other decorative crafts. There are also handmade bags and women’s accessories there. You can even buy traditional items for Balinese rituals there.

This art market opens daily from 08.00 to 19.00. Some of the stores even open for 24 hours. It is situated at Jalan Raya Sukawati, a main road that connects Denpasar and Ubud. It is about 20 kilometers northeast from Denpasar city or about 10 kilometers south from Ubud. If you are from Kuta, the drive trip will take about one hour.

Kumbasari Market

If you are in Kuta, then Kumbasari Market is the best place to visit for shopping. Similar to Sukawati Art Market, most of the sellers in Kumbasari Market are the producers as well. Bargaining is also important in determining the prices of every item. The products available at this market is also various. But the most products available are paintings. At this market, you can find a lot of paintings from many Balinese artists, both local or international.

Kumbasari Market is located on Jalan Sulawesi. From the center of Kuta, it is about 10 kilometers away. You only need to drive for 15 minutes to reach this market. Once you get to the market, be careful of where you entering. There are two markets standing side by side at this place; Kumbasari and Badung Market. Both markets have similar buildings but different items to sell. Kumbasari Market sells artworks, handicrafts, and souvenirs. Meanwhile, Badung Market sells daily household products.

Kumbasari Market(Source: Flickr. Credit: michugila)

Krishna Souvenirs Center

Bargaining is an important skill to shop in Indonesia if you visit traditional market as most prices are determined by the bargaining process. But not having a good bargaining skill would be a total problem if you want to shop for souvenirs in Bali. You can still get great items with good prices from Krishna Souvenirs Center. At this market, all the prices are fixed, yet it is on affordable and reasonable level.

Krishna Souvenirs Center has four branches that are located in Denpasar and Kuta. All the markets are located on strategic place so it wouldn’t be difficult to find. You can simply drive there by yourself or get a taxi. The branches are:

Krisna Nusa Indah

Location : Jalan Nusa Indah 77, Denpasar, Bali

Phone :+62 361 262365, +62 361 264780

This shop was the first to establish. At this shop, not only you can buy many kinds of unique products, but you can also see the process of making T-shirts.

Krisna Nusa Kambangan

Location : Jalan Nusa Kambangan 160A, Denpasar, Bali

Phone :+62 361 8423573, +62 361 8423574

This shop is the easiest to access because it is located at the heart of Denpasar. Tourists sometime visit this shop on their way walking around Denpasar from one tourism object to another.

Krisna Sunset Road

Location : Jalan Sunset Road 88, Abian Base, Kuta, Bali

Phone :+62 361 750031, +62 361 750987

This shop is the largest and the most complete Krishna Souvenir Center. This place is best for people who really love shopping as you can spend your whole days browsing for the various items to buy. The shop is also integrated with a restaurant named Grafika. This way, you can have a good meal to recharge your energy so you can shop for more.

Rama Krisna

Location : Jalan Raya Tuban 2X, Denpasar, Bali

Phone :+62 361764532

This shop is just five minutes away from Ngurah Rai International Airport. The shop opens 24 hours daily to accommodate tourists who are short of time.

Visiting Bali would not feel complete without shopping for souvenirs. Either it the traditional crafts or modern products, it is important to buy unique items in Bali before you leave the wonderful island.